The Grammys cast aside their celebratory vibe Sunday to pay tribute to singer Whitney Houston, whose death over the weekend hung heavy over the 54th annual awards show.

Until Saturday, the pre-show drama had focused on Adele and how the six-time-nominee would fare in her first public performance since canceling a tour and having surgery on her vocal cords.

A glowing Adele did not disappoint, nor was she disappointed. She won six Grammys, including the Big Three: song and record of the year for “Rolling in the Deep,” and album of the year for “21.” Earlier in the night, she thanked “the doctors who brought my voice back.” That voice sound a touch raspy at points, but her resolve surged as she powered through “Rolling in the Deep.” Without much more than a few hand gestures and a couple of shy smiles, she commanded the screen like few performers during the 3 ½-hour nationally televised broadcast from the Staples Center in Los Angeles. A great song and a great voice will do that for you.

She described her winning album “21” as being about something “everyone’s been through … which is a rubbish relationship,” and that universality translated to the year’s biggest-selling and now most-acclaimed recording.